Best way to build this 2 in 1 build

WindsurfMaui

Senior Member
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  My plan is to build a StratoPaul. I just like the sound of humbuckers  but want it in the shape of a Strat with a bolt on neck. So i thought this 2 in 1 build might be the right answer for me. However I think I don't have enough experience to do it in the most efficient way so I'm open to suggestions on how to build it smarter.

Let's start with part 1. I saw a Youtube video of Joe Gore from tonefiend.com where he put a pair of humbuckers in a Strat and had wide access to a variety of tones.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Ht5dAW5Rs  So I want to start there but add some variations. I want to start with a pair of humbuckers (I'm not buying a pair of Bonamassa humbuckers, but found an interesting company in England that may have a good sounding pair of humbuckers for very little money called Warman guitars. I think they may have a good tone and are cheap enough I can experiment and change the magnets and not worry if I mess them up) and attach them to a 5 way switch so they will play the following.
Pos 1 Full humbucker bridge,
Pos 2 Outside coils of both humbuckers,
Pos 3 Both humbuckers (not sure if I want them in series or Parallel,
Pos 4 Inside coils of both humbuckers (I got this inside/outside coil idea from a PRS)
Pos 5 Full Humbucker Neck.
(I think this is the easy part)

Then I want to use Joe's double tone sequence. First the output goes through the last tone knob that has a capacitor to take out some of the bottom end and allow a range of bottom tones. Then this goes through the first tone knob to provide a range of the top end. (This first tone knob will be a stacked 250/500. More on that later.) then the output goes to an on/on toggle switch then to a Volume knob  (That may need to be another stacked 250/500 pot) with a treble bleed Capacitor then to the output jack.

The  2nd build is simpler. A Single coil size 14K mini humbucker in the middle position. Rather than complicate the build and add it to the humbuckers I want to take it directly to the first stacked tone knob on the 250 pot with a capacitor then to the on/on switch and then to the Volume knob (which again may need a 250/500 stacked knob) then to the output jack.

I don't think combining the humbuckers and single coil are worth the effort. And the on/on switch allows me to move between the humbuckers and single coil easily.  So is there an easier way to do this? I'm not sure but the on/on switch may have to go after the Volume switch.

So I'm going to stick this on a Strat with a Warmoth Gibson conversion neck (when the neck arrives).
 
One change I could make in this 2 in 1 build is instead of using an on/on toggle switch maybe I could use a DPDT Push-Pull pot on the second Tone knob and when down It sends all the humbucker tones to the volume pot and when up it sends the single coil sized mini humbucker signal to the volume pot. That would eliminate my having to drill a hole in the pickguard.

But on the plus side I'm getting a real education of these very complicated toggle switches can do. I'm starting to think in the future I many want to abandon the 5 way switch and instead go with a series of toggle switches.
 
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